Airtel, Aircel to launch iPhone 4 in India

Telecom operators Airtel and Aircel have sent out statements to the media announcing that Apple iPhone 4 will launch in India on their networks in the coming months.

Their identical press releases do not divulge much, but with many operators vying for consumers’ attention with the same product we can expect competitive pricing when coveted smartphone finally makes it to Indian markets.

Both Aircel and Airtel have rolled out their 3G services in India and we expect to see special 3G plans for the iPhone 4 released on their network. As far as pricing is concerned, the iPhone 4 should carry a price tag of around Rs. 41,000 in India for the 32GB model, with the 16GB model retailing for a little less.

Last year, Wall Street Journal, a U.S. daily, had reported that Apple will launch a CDMA iPhone 4 in India with Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices. We have not seen that deal materialize either.

Apple iPhone 4 boasts the most vibrant, highest-resolution phone screen ever, with four times the pixel count of previous iPhone models. It comes with a 5-megapixel camera with built-in LED flash, an illumination sensor and built-in LED light. Multitasking in iPhone 4 makes it possible to receive Skype or VoIP calls while other apps are running, and even when your iPhone is locked.

Right now, Apple is working on the next-generation iPhone 5 device – the edition after iPhone 4 – which is expected to release this summer. So, when the U.S. and the rest of the world would be gearing up for the iPhone 5, India would see iPhone 4 hitting its shores, finally.

Apple has been heavily criticized for its step-motherly treatment toward India, a country considered to be a fast-developing technology giant by other gadget makers like Samsung and HTC. And this seems to ring true with a late launch of iPhone 4 here.

However, Apple did surprise us by deciding to launch the iPad 2 in India one month after its release in the United States. When the original iPad was introduced, it was dumped in India after 9 months of its release in the United States. Frankly, we were not expecting the iPad 2 to hit the Indian shores officially before 2012!